I've been thinking to get a new rig for a long time but didnt have enough money to satisfy my needs. Now that I have a reliable income source I cant think a better time to strike on .

About my current gear; I have an Ibanez rg370dxl and a micro cube. I couldn't have asked for a better starter gear but now they are a bit inadequate for my level of play. What I want is, a versatile gear that I can get good tones.

Lets start with the guitars. As a lefty I don't have much choice on guitars, only Ibanez and Fender are generous on us lefties. I am aware that my current guitar is one of the best guitars for lefties with some modification. It can be a total shred monster with some touch, and that's what I am exactly going to do: change the pickups.

I have chosen DiMarzio as pickups as It was rather well documented than other brands. Here is what I picked:

Furthermore, I'm planning to get a new axe for blues-rock spectrum. I'm planning to get a Mexican Stratocaster as clean sounds from my Ibanez never sounded good enough(and hell, its a Stratocaster that I always wanted ) . I've always wanted to focus on blues but all I can get was frustration . I've heard that Mexican Strats are weaker than their American cousins and this leaves me in a dilemma.

As an amplifier I cant think an alternative to Roland Cube 80x. I was pretty content with my micro-cube, and this amplifier offers nearly everything I ask.

In regards to Pickups, I also had the D activators...I was very happy with them, sound was good... they are a great pickup.... BUT....

i then put in a set of John Petrucci pups, Crunch Lab for the bridge and Liquifire for the neck and WOW! They have all the characteristics of the D activator, easy Harmonics, bright etc, but they kill the D activators in rhythm tone and lead dynamics, they are just more rounded. They don't usually come in a a search on the di marzio web site either.

But trust me, Crunch Lab and Liquifire combo is STUNNING.... I now have them in my Washburn N4

Personally I have a set of Seymour Duncans in my RG350, a Jazz in the neck and a JB in the Bridge. Works great as an all round set. If you have your mind set in DiMarzio's then Jax's recommendation is a great combo!

You may also want to check out Bareknuckle Pickups too.

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I'd rather have a full Bottle in front of me than a full Frontal Lobotomy!!

There is one set that turns every basswood Ibanez into a shred guitar and that is the Steve Vai Evolutuion Bridge paired with a Paf Pro in the neck - massive range of sounds, versatile as hell and perfect for the woods your guitar is made out of.

Can't go wrong with a Mexico Strat but why not get a used USA Strat for the same amount of money?

And go for a real amp when you are looking for an improvement over your Roland Mirco Cube. The Cube 80 is pretty much the same amp with a few more options and louder/bigger. Save up a little more money and treat yourself with a nice tube amp instead.

I would support all the advices give above, it's all realistic judgment. As far as Mexico Strats goes, you can find a good piece of wood here and there, and as always, don't rush things. If you have some budget estimate, perhaps we can give more detailed advices on the amp? I would also support Zakk's advice on getting a better amp. Let us know what's the purpose of this amp (home, studio, small venue, medium venue, large venue), and we will give some advices.

I would support all the advices give above, it's all realistic judgment. As far as Mexico Strats goes, you can find a good piece of wood here and there, and as always, don't rush things. If you have some budget estimate, perhaps we can give more detailed advices on the amp? I would also support Zakk's advice on getting a better amp. Let us know what's the purpose of this amp (home, studio, small venue, medium venue, large venue), and we will give some advices.

I agree with Ivan, the budget can help us a lot in what regards making recommendations

After jax's post, I took a look into petrucci combo and they kinda attracted me, I'm probably going to install those pickups (CrunchLab - LiquiFire). I can spend 600-700 $ on amplifier(can push a little more if something significant comes up). I don't think I'm going to play at huge venues too soon but the amp I'm going to buy must be powerful enough to rock your run-off-the-mill places.

After jax's post, I took a look into petrucci combo and they kinda attracted me, I'm probably going to install those pickups (CrunchLab - LiquiFire). I can spend 600-700 $ on amplifier(can push a little more if something significant comes up). I don't think I'm going to play at huge venues too soon but the amp I'm going to buy must be powerful enough to rock your run-off-the-mill places.

Hmmm, you would probably want a combo not a separate head and cabinet if you are not heading for big venues yet. So, here's what I would choose if i had that budget and be willing to push it up a bit.

Since out of what I am figuring out, you want an amp that will rock, here we go:

Granted, I don't play much metal, but I'm partial to the tone/quality/price of Fender tube amps. You can pick up a Fender Deluxe or Deville Hotrod used for fairly cheap. They are super versatile, virtually indestructible (other than the solder joints. a one-time, cheap repair), loud enough for anything you'll need, and great tone!! But keep the micro-cube for practice!! They are very handy to have around. I just used my micro cube "acoustic" setting last week to sit in last-minute on a live session. Used the piezo setting on my Parker Nitefly, and mic'd the roland on the acoustic setting....and it sounded great!! I also strap the micro-cube to my bike in the summer, for the jams!

Guitar-wise, there are some mexi strats that are awesome!! But, you can sometimes get a USA for not much more....but, just being USA doesn't make it a great strat either!!

For me, the answer was "Parker". It replaced my strat, and does everything my strat did....but better, and is VERY versatile!! I can play jazz, country, shred, acoustic.... it's the only guitar I'll ever need. I highly encourage everyone to go play one.

Be patient, new gear will come. Important thing is that you know your current gear limits and that you feel comfortable with it. If you have the choice - try new gear as much as possible. It's much easier to buy once you know how 6-7 of the great guitar amps sound: Marshall, Fender, Vox, Mesa, Peavey, Randall, Blackstar. All brands should be tested out.